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I am AHMP

AHMP supports professionals who properly manage substances that are harmful to human health and the environment, making our world a safer and healthier place to live and work. The “I Am AHMP” page highlights the diversity of experiences of the members we serve. Read the stories below. Share your story—Click here for more information →

If you would like to share your experience as an EHS&S professional, please submit your story (written, or a 30–60 second video) and a high resolution photo to info@ahmpnet.org. We want to know:

Why did you get into the field?

Who influenced you?

What drives you?

How do you protect the public and yourself?

When do you feel most proud about your profession?

I am AHMP Stories

B J Atkins, CHMM—President, Atkins Environmental Help, Inc.

With a degree in oceanography combined with economics, it was an easy reach to start working in the petroleum industry. Working both onshore and offshore on environmental regulatory compliance was an excellent training ground for the EHS compliance work I do today. Spill prevention, control, and cleanup, plus the proper management of a myriad of other petroleum production-related chemicals became common assignments.

This was a terrific background for a career in environmental consulting and hazmat management with clients in several industries. I watched as many of my petroleum production counterparts made the jump to environmental consulting, with a commensurate improvement in lifestyle. An optimist with an entrepreneurial spirit, I started this career influenced by a number of personalities, most guiding me in a positive direction. My father played a role in encouraging me to become certified as a CHMM, among many other certifications. Mr. Richard Cartwright, who to me coined the phrase "BE A PAL, BE A BUDDY, BE A CHMM", has also proven a great leader and mentor to us CHMMs.

With a tag line "Cleaning up the world….a little bit at a time", I truly believe we humans are given the chance to "camp" on this planet which does not belong to us. The first rule of camping is: LEAVE IT BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT! Every day, in every way, I am all about helping the environment while assisting my colleagues in commerce to make a reasonable profit. Both are possible, but it takes enthusiasm, creativity and commitment.

I have participated in and presented more training on accident and spill prevention than I ever thought I would. The notion of SAFETY FIRST must become a part of your psyche - a reflex. Keep your wits about you. Imprudence, incompetence, laziness and mediocrity are intolerable, if you are interested in protecting the public or yourself.

I am proud when I have completed and presented a large project which, if implemented properly will protect a clients’ employees, their property AND the environment / public. As I visit a public venue and the strong planning skills of an EHS Professional who, during the planning effort, had the clear interests of the community in mind - makes me proud. Knowing a disaster playing out on the national news could have been much worse, if not for the efforts of a few dedicated EHS professionals, makes me proud. Being recognized as a peer and associated with many consummate EHS Professionals participating in local AHMP Chapter events – makes me the most proud.

Dwight Clark, CHMM—Principal, Full Circle Compliance LLC

I got into the EHS field as a result of my childhood in the liberal bastion of Northern California and few life-forming experiences early in my career.

I was present for some significant life-changing events, particularly when two very close friends died in a confined space in which I was with them. I really did not set out in this direction, it was more of a draw. I am most proud when I can effect change that does not kill a company but improves worker safety or the overall environmental impacts.

I am almost an accidental ESOH professional. My undergraduate degree is in chemistry, and I really enjoyed my classes in instrumental analysis. With that in mind, I was considering continuing onto graduate work in chemistry, but that changed soon before graduation. While in my final year of my undergraduate work, I obtained an internship at the City of Toledo wastewater treatment plant in the laboratory.

It was a lot of the same thing, day after day, and I realized that lab work could be pretty boring. I was also on the lookout for a full-time job to follow graduation, and kept my eyes and ears open. I discovered that the Division of Environmental Services (who delivered samples to the lab at least 2-3 times per week) was hiring sampling technicians. I applied and was hired (actually before graduation), starting my 6 ½ year career with the city. My first boss in Environmental Services was a CHMM, and I learned a lot from him. I took advantage of my opportunities, completing my Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering, getting two promotions while I was with the city, and performing a lot of hazmat response. I was able to move from sampling technician to emergency responder to pretreatment program and NESHAPS enforcement, along with some industrial hygiene. I learned a lot of how to deal with various response agencies (both good and bad), which I still use today. That boss who was a CHMM inspired me to obtain my own certification, which I followed up in later years with both a PE in Environmental Engineering and a CIH.

While working for the city, I reach a kind of plateau; the positions above me were “1-deep” positions, and the folks in them were early in their tenures, so I would not be moving into their positions anytime soon. I was contacted to join the USAF in essentially the same type of work. One of my sisters is in the same career field, and we had compared notes over the years on how our jobs were the same and different. I jumped at the chance to switch over to the USAF, and have been with them almost 15 years now.

My driving force, the thing that gets me out of bed each morning, is that I keep people safe. I keep them safe from the chemicals they work with, the physical hazards they are exposed to, from their own desire to get the job done, and their supervisors desire to get the job done “just a little faster.” I often describe my job as “keeping people’s jobs from hurting them now or 20 years in the future” and I think that I do that. By knowing hazards, knowing ways to protect from hazards, and knowing a little bit of psychology to explain to people why they should care, I keep them around for themselves and their families.

I feel proudest when I am able to see that light go on in someone’s eyes, when they “get” that while risk is always present, they can keep it down at an acceptable level through their own efforts. When someone else points out a hazard before I can, when I get the call asking how best to comply with a new (or old) regulation, I know that I have made a difference in someone’s health. As an AF Medical Officer, we are trying to change from a culture of healthcare to a culture of health, and prevention of hazards, reduction of risks, and keeping people safe from harm is how we keep people healthy, instead of making them healthy again.

Like many other EHS professionals, I got into the field accidentally. I happened to take a graduate assistantship in the University of Massachusetts Boston Safety Office, which was part of the Facilities Department, when I entered the Ph.D. program in environmental science at UMass. What I learned very quickly was that there was a vast array of different issues. Every day I learned something new. When the office was separated from Facilities and new positions were posted, I applied and was hired for an environmental coordinator position.

Once I started working full-time I decided that I would get a second Master’s degree rather than finish the Ph.D. That is when I made the decision that I wanted to remain in the EHS field. The new position was responsible for all the environmental issues at the University. At that time it was mainly hazardous waste management but over the years it has grown to cover campus-wide permitting, laboratory safety, training, wastewater management, and many other areas. What I have learned – and what keeps me motivated is that EHS really is a mix – technical knowledge, step-wise decision-making, common sense, peacekeeping, communicator, lobbyist and so much more. There really is never a dull moment.

There is not one person who influenced me. I have been fortunate to have been surrounded by colleagues that truly enjoy what they are doing and who are willing to share their knowledge. Sometimes it is also nice to commiserate.

Back in the late 90’s I worked with other colleges and universities on a pilot project with EPA that helped EPA understand that academic institutions are markedly different than industry and that their hazardous waste regulations did not work. In 2008 EPA published new hazardous waste regulations for academic institutions largely based on the pilot program that I participated in. Getting EPA to change their regulations…..priceless!

I continue to work at UMass Boston on environmental issues – let’s face it - it is not everywhere that you can work in a facility on a former municipal waste landfill, surrounded by water, in the flight path of a major US airport located in downtown Boston. No shortage of environmental issues here….

I continue to work with my colleagues to push regulators to move toward performance-based approaches to environmental challenges.

Finally, I am trying to raise safe and environmentally aware kids. In our house we go around the table at dinner every night I talk about what everyone did all day. Which leads them to ask many questions about what I do. I think I have convinced them that I am some sort of super hero – why are you the one that got called to go in at 2 AM? – well because the room they needed to look in had all kinds of nasty stuff in it and I had to make sure it was safe for people to go in. Why did you have to count fish today? – well because we use water from the ocean to help cool the buildings but we have to make sure that we are not damaging local fish populations. I also get to ask them questions – did you wear your safety glasses and gloves in science class? What did you learn about global warming? Raising aware and conscious kids – at the end of the day, that is when I am most proud to be an EHS professional.

About two years into my environmental consulting career, I became a hazardous materials management professional by accident--an almost fatal one. We were collecting samples from a coal gasification facility, and one of the samples turned out to contain a volatile organic compound that was a central nervous system toxin. We never identified the culprit, but the experience was eye-opening for our corporate managers and for me.

After that, I designed a high-hazard laboratory and embarked on a five-year odyssey into safely collecting, synthesizing, purifying, analyzing, and distributing toxic environmental pollutants and potential carcinogens, mutagens, and teratogens for federal environmental regulatory and cancer research programs. After that, I changed jobs and managed a multi-state environmental laboratory and consulting services company. After I discovered the majority shareholder was playing fast and loose with legal niceties, I parted ways and started my own company. We specialized in environmental investigations and remediation and regulatory compliance auditing and program development.

It was during this time, about 12 years into my career, that I began to think about professional certifications. At first it was more of a challenge to see which initials I could put after my name. The first set weren’t worth much, just a resume and registration fee. In 1989 I noticed the CHMM certification had survived its first few years and seemed to be the first credential for environmental professionals that had staying power, so I took the test and passed. I really didn’t get involved in organizational activities until 1998, when I approached the local Michigan chapter and volunteered to be on the Program Committee. That committee was responsible for putting on certification test review courses and a one-day annual conference. I had organized a few symposia for American Chemical Society national meetings and thought I might be able to help. I graduated to Chair of that committee in 2000, then was elected Secretary of the chapter in 2001, a position I held through 2013.

During that time, I grew tired of the stress of running a company, so I sold it and moved on to a new firm, where I helped restructure a 30-person environmental practice and design a new primary practice helping communities and developers sustainably redevelop brownfields. In 2004 I became Co-Chair of the ACHMM Government Affairs Committee, and in 2009 I was asked to fill a vacant Director’s position for the now-rebranded AHMP. In 2012 I was nominated to be Vice President/President-Elect for 2013, and in 2014 I was privileged to serve as President of this fine organization.

My years of association with AHMP and the Michigan Chapter have fostered many strong personal relationships and an extensive professional network. The people I’ve met and the networks I built through AHMP have taught me much about our profession and professionalism, and have helped me serve my clients with capabilities and services in parts of the country to which I otherwise would not have had ready access. These relationships have also helped me start a new service area for my company, by teaming with highly qualified professionals until we can generate enough revenue to bring the services in-house.

Joe Jenkins, CHMM—Environmental Engineer, Black Hills Corporation

In 1999, a co-worker introduced me to Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals. The national conference was held in nearby Kansas City, and he asked if we could co-author a paper. The presentation was well received and sparked interest by quite a few national and international companies looking for ways to improve internal and external notifications during emergency response. At the conference, I learned many things I could use and that have since become long-time components of Black Hills Corporation’s EMS.

I was sufficiently impressed and motivated by the conference that I found a Hazardous Materials review course and testing opportunity and received my CHMM credential that fall. The EMS that was crafted using materials from that and other AHMP conferences is, in part, responsible for BHC becoming the only utility currently recognized by the State of Colorado’s Environmental Excellence Program.

Since 1999, I helped reinvigorate the Rocky Mountain Chapter and have stayed involved ever since. I have held many roles including Membership Committee Chair, Director, web administrator and President. I have coordinated and taught the Essentials of Hazardous Materials courses to promote EHS&S expertise and support others to obtain a professional credential. I love the current topics presented and discussed at our chapter meetings and the networking opportunities our local meetings offer. We have fun, make friends, see fascinating operations like mining operations, solid and hazardous waste landfills and recycling operations, LEED certified buildings, and for some unknown reason, lots of breweries and distilleries.

These days, I now serve on the national Board and I spend a good deal of my time promoting AHMP. We bring together people representing every aspect of the EHS&S profession. This is something no other organization does (or can do). AHMP serves environmental, health, safety and security professionals nationwide providing opportunities to network; to obtain continuing education credits for many different EH&S credentials recognized by government, business and industry; to bring consultants, agencies and the regulated community together to promote effective working relationships; and to promote consistently high standards of practice and expertise.

Brian P. Kaiser, CSP, CHMM, RPIH

In 1990, I retired from Active Military Service and was employed as a HAZMAT Responder at the Marion County Health Department, Indianapolis, Indiana. Later that year, I was employed as an industrial hygienist by the US Army at the USA Environmental Hygiene Agency, Edgewood, Maryland, and at Kirk USA Health Clinic, APG, Maryland, and at Baltimore District USA Corps of Engineers. Because of my time and experience as a HAZMAT responder I was often called on to respond to HAZMAT Incidents.

My Mentors included; Mr. Craig Morin, CIH, a Navy Industrial Hygienist, and Dr. Mary F. Vaeth, MD, Chief Preventive Medicine at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC. What drives me is organization, and strategic planning, and program development for various contingencies. The public is best served by education on chemical and biological hazards such as EPA's "Right to Know Law", and OSHA's HAZCOM Standard. I am most proud when EHS professional receive outside, public recognition, for contributions to their communities, which doesn't seem to happen often enough.

Like many of my peers, my journey into the world of hazardous materials management has had many twists and turns. The journey began in 1978, and at that time I had no inclination of where it would take me. I started out with a goal to become an environmental police officer, or game warden as they were referred to back then. With that goal in mind, I earned an associate’s degree in conservation law enforcement and followed that up with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science with a fisheries concentration.

It was while working toward my bachelor’s degree during a toxicology course that I had my first encounter with the concept of hazardous materials. Even then, I still had visions of working in fisheries. The real transition started after I graduated. I started working in a temporary capacity for a paper coating company, James River Graphics, in their environmental department. This was my first experience with the worlds of RCRA hazardous waste, the CAA and the CWA in practical applications. It was this work experience that really jump-started my foray into a career in hazardous materials management.

My next opportunity was basically being in the right place at the right time. I was working at a manufacturing facility and started assisting the safety department with completing air emission reports that were required. It was around this time that they also were drawn into the POTW industrial pre-treatment program. From there, the position of environmental technician was created. It was while in this position that I started attending more conferences and workshops on various state and federal EH&S topics on both existing and new regulations. I earned my waste water treatment operator’s license, was appointed to the LEPC, and became a state certified toxics use reduction planner under a 1989 state regulation. It was shortly after that I started researching various professional accreditations, certifications and memberships, which led me to IHMM, earning my CHMM certification and eventually joining ACHMM /AHMP.

Luckily, my company was very engaged on individuals continuing to learn and advance in their fields, which allowed me to attend my first national conference in 1999, and each year since. With their backing I was able to earn my masters in environmental management, over twenty years after completing my undergraduate studies. I am not only involved with EH&S at the facility I am based out of, but have been pulled into several corporate teams dealing with environmental compliance, sustainability, health & safety as well as product compliance

Through the networking opportunities and contacts that I have made through AHMP, I became involved in the “Admin Group” on the national level, and then eventually in the local chapter where I have served in several different capacities, and continue to serve today. Recently I have had the honor of being appointed to a Director’s position on the AHMP board. The continuing education opportunities through both the support of my employer and my affiliation with AHMP have allowed me to evolve my position from a job, into a career as a hazardous material professional. On a weekly basis I get to interact with regulators, educators, and professionals from all disciplines of environmental health & safety. Being involved both locally and nationally allows me to attempt to give back to organizations that have been a tremendous influence in advancing my career.

Elizabeth Marsh, CHMM—Senior Engineer, Geosyntec

I became an environmental engineer because I was good at math and chemistry and it seemed like a “softer” engineering, where I could make more of a difference. I had started a recycling program at my high school, plus my dad was an environmental attorney, so I could see that there were good career opportunities in this new field. I was the first of the graduating classes at University of Michigan to have the words “environmental” associated with my B.S.E. Previous degrees just had B.S.E. in civil engineering and mine had B.S.E. in “civil and environmental” engineering.

I chose consulting because I knew I wanted some variety in my work. I couldn’t see myself going to the same manufacturing plant and doing the same job. More than 19 years later, this is still why I like my job – the variety. Most of what I do is compliance auditing. I get to travel to some cool places and some not-so-cool places. I get to see lots of different types of manufacturing plants (like that TV show “How It’s Made"). And probably what I enjoy most is meeting different people and through the auditing process “training” them to be better in compliance with environmental regulations which ultimately is better for the environment.

Some of my most proud moments when I think I have been my best at protecting the public & environment have been when I am involved in a large-scale spill response and cleanup. The team-work & adrenaline is amazing. Long hours are rewarded with almost immediate results with areas being cleaned up, wildlife being saved and rehabilitated, and people getting to go about their normal lives again.

I became a CHMM because I had a client (General Motors) who required it for their EHS professionals and I was going to be a full-time contractor in two of their plants. I figured I needed to meet the requirements that my client was asking of their staff. Becoming a CHMM and getting involved with MI-AHMP and AHMP has given me networking opportunities, educational opportunities, and lifetime friendships.

Leo Oberle, CHMM, CSP—TES Manager, BASF

After graduating from college with a chemical engineering degree, every employer I worked for assigned some or all of the environmental responsibilities for the site to me. I had been working for a manufacturer for about six months when my boss came to me and asked if I would take over the environmental duties, since I had some experience in environmental compliance. After sorting through the records of the previous environmental “expert,” I realized there were a lot of outstanding issues/disagreements with the local authority having jurisdiction.

After coming to grips with what I had gotten myself into, I approached my boss about certification. I explained that I wanted to get certified so that when the regulatory authorities came for a visit, I would have some credentials behind me as I dealt with them. A safety professional friend of mine suggested the CHMM certification, so after some research, I applied, took the test, and became a CHMM.I work with my company, younger professionals, and students to help them understand the world of hazardous materials. I explain the benefits of companies safely utilizing these substances and how if properly handled these substances can better everyone’s lives. I get tremendous satisfaction from talking with a young person that believes we should eliminate all “hazardous” substances from the world. After explaining how these substances can properly be managed to make their world better and they agree that some “hazardous” materials are necessary for the life we live, it is very satisfying. I am driving in the field by trying to eliminate the possibility of exposure for all people, not just at work, but also in their personal lives.

Like many of us, I fell into the hazardous materials management field by both desire and accident. In the 1970s, I was working at a international chemical company as a chemical reactor operator and found myself in the position of "waste coordinator" by default (i.e., no one else wanted to do it!). I had learned early on that the proper handling and disposal of hazardous materials was critical to the safety of my fellow employees and our environment.

Most people were NOT doing this! The turning point in my focus on hazardous materials and health and safety came during one midnight shift when I watched three fellow workers perish due to poor communications and management. After all these years, protecting my fellow workers, the public, and our environment is still is a personal and professional priority!

Barry Taggart, CHMM—Environmental Scientist, Coral Management

During my years studying as an undergraduate majoring in life sciences and chemistry, I had always envisioned a career in biological research or continuing my education to enter the health care industry or working in a chemistry lab. However, as I neared graduation the major domestic industrial environmental events such as Love Canal in Niagara Falls, NY and WR Grace in Woburn, MA were headline news.

Students getting ready to venture out into the employment world began speaking of careers in the environmental sector. The industry was fairly new and opportunities for growth and advancement were endless. A college friend who also majored in sciences had been hired by a local fledgling hazardous waste management and emergency response company just a year prior. Here is where my career in hazardous materials management began.

The realization that I was completely unaware of even basic concepts of hazardous materials management such as the various aspects of a hazard communication system; Right to Know, the NFPA diamond, or the HMIS bar code was immediate. As such, it was eye opening realizing that I had handled hazardous materials without that knowledge and that an entire regulatory framework and industry exists not only for protection of the environment but also for worker safety associated with it. I was so intrigued by this new world of regulations and the various regulatory agencies. I felt immediately empowered mastering the meanings, definitions and standards, the associated acronyms. In all of that, I was also applying learned principles of science; of chemistry, biology and physics. It offered an immediate opportunity for a unique and exciting career.

Improper uses, storage, transport, and disposal of hazardous materials invariably results in accidents including destruction or damage to property, human bodily effects or injury, and degradation of the natural environment through contamination of air, soil, water, and natural fauna. The April 17th, 2013 West Fertilizer Company explosion in Texas shows how improper storage of potentially explosive materials can lead to massive destruction of property and loss of lives. As an environmental professional and Certified Hazardous Materials Manager, I hold an obligation and duty to not only ensure a safe working environment, but to also establish public awareness of the importance of proper hazardous materials management as it extends throughout industry, academia, and the EHS professional community.

To that effect, AHMP is an association that supports EHS professionals of various disciplines and educational background by providing a community in which to share ideas and exchange knowledge, to attend networking events, and continue professional development by providing up to date information on professional certification programs.